1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of sales of computer software and other digital or analog information. More particularly, in a preferred embodiment, it relates to software that is provided other than by purchase or license of packaged software stored on a physical medium, such as electronically distributed software, i.e. software that is delivered to the customer electronically, rather than through physical distribution methods. Such software can be downloaded from digital data networks such as the Internet, on compact disk read only memory (CD ROM) or floppy, come pre-installed on the hard drive of a computer system, or through broadcast media. Software distributed in such ways other than purchase of the particular packaged software stored on a physical medium is typically provided as a demo copy which can be "unlocked" to give the customer the features of the full product. Most especially, it relates to a system, method and article of manufacture for verifying that a user has disabled software or other digital or analog information that the user wishes to return for credit.
The system, method and article of manufacture can be applied to any type of information which can be purchased using an unlock method, including, but not limited to, software, data, music and video.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Increasingly, manufacturers are distributing software as unlockable demo versions to cut down on distribution costs. This method of distribution causes difficulty when a product needs to be returned, since there is no physical media that can be sent back to the manufacturer to verify that the product is no longer in use.
After a product has been purchased, the customer may decide to return the product. In the case where there is no physical media that can be returned, such as when the demo copy has been unlocked, the vendor must rely on the word of the customer that the software has been removed from their machine. Furthermore, if the customer had been given an access code to unlock the software, a method is needed to prevent re-use of this access code. With credit card purchases, there is not an effective way to refuse to accept a return.
Currently, companies that sell software using this model simply write off losses due to fraudulent returns. This represents a small but significant amount of lost revenue. A need therefore exists for a system and method which will serve as a substitute for returning a packaged software product for credit.
There is a substantial body of prior art relating to various systems and methods for distribution of software and other information that involve the use of access codes to unlock the software, as well as for preventing unauthorized copying of software or other information. The use of such access codes allows demo versions of the software, which actually contain a complete copy of the software, to be made fully functionally upon entry of the access code, which is supplied to the user after payment is made, such as with a credit card. Examples of such systems and methods are disclosed in Hellman, U.S. Pat. No. 4,658,093, issued Apr. 14, 1987; Chernow et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,999,806, issued Mar. 12, 1991; Holmes, U.S. Pat. No. 5,287,407, issued Feb. 15, 1994 and Chou et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,337,357, issued Aug. 9, 1994.
In contrast, there appears to be no attention to the reverse problem of insuring that a user of software or other information who wishes to return the software or other information for credit no longer has full access to that software or information. When software or other information is distributed as a package containing the software or other information separately on a physical storage medium, the storage medium containing the software or other information can be returned along with any printed documentation in order to receive the credit.